'Iolani star JJ Mandaquit gets rare early offer from University of Hawaii
Jun. 18—It's not the first and won't be the last, but there's something special about a scholarship offer from Hawaii for JJ Mandaquit.
The 6-foot-1 basketball standout from 'Iolani announced the offer on Friday afternoon via social media.
"I'm super excited and blessed to have received an offer from my home state, University of Hawaii, " he wrote. "Thank you, Coach Ganot and the rest of the coaching staff for believing in me."
Last year, prior to his freshman season, Mandaquit received an offer from Portland, a Division I program. That came off the heels of his performance with the Rose City Rebels basketball club, also based in Portland.
Mandaquit grew up in Hilo, playing hoops for his father, former Hilo High standout Jason Mandaquit. Playing on the club circuit opened up opportunities, and his All-State performance for 'Iolani—voted No. 3 in the Star-Advertiser Fab 15—helped the Raiders get more exposure.
"We actually attended UH's team camp last week, " Raiders coach Ryan Hirata said. "We had an opportunity to play in the Stan Sheriff Center and Coach (Eran ) Ganot and the staff got to watch us. They called this morning and they offered him."
The offer came before 'Iolani began play in the Section 7 tournament in State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Ariz., home turf of the Arizona Cardinals. The event features 230 top-level high school teams from the West Coast. 'Iolani, the first team from Hawaii to play in the annual event, played St. Mary's (Ariz.) and lost a close game, Hirata said.
"JJ had 25 or more points, 17 or 19 in the first half. He proved today he could hang. It's not easy going up against what they consider a top-25 point guard in the class of 2023, Styles Phipps, " Hirata added.
Phipps just completed his sophomore year and has an offer from Auburn. Mandaquit has noticeably bulked up since the end of last high school season.
"To be a Division I caliber player, it's more than getting shots up. You have to work on your body. It's amazing at Section 7, " Hirata said.
Of the local high school greats who went on to play for Hawaii, none were as young as Mandaquit.
"I'm happy for him, happy for UH, our team, the school. He's worked extremely hard, man. There's hard work, and there's consistently hard work, " Hirata said. "I really think, I could be wrong, but this is the earliest a local boy has been offered since maybe Kalia McGee, Jarinn Akana, Alika Smith were offered. Miah (Ostrowski ) went on a football scholarship to UH. That makes it awesome."
Meanwhile, 'Iolani has two games on Saturday before completing the tournament on Sunday. The domed football facility has transformed and has 12 wooden basketball courts on its surface.
"Bob Hurley (of Arizona State ), Eran was there. Portland, Utah, Washington State. This is one of the best-run high school tournaments on the West Coast, " Hirata said. "Bishop Gorman, Mater Dei, Archbishop Mitty. Every solid West Coast program is there."
